


the buddy system (and other smart plans)

by badskeletonpuns



Category: King Falls AM (Podcast)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Ficlet Collection, Fluff, M/M, Multi, One Shot Collection, Polyamory, Romance, specific content warnings in chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2017-07-29
Packaged: 2018-08-07 19:14:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 9,943
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7726492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badskeletonpuns/pseuds/badskeletonpuns
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of all my King Falls AM tumblr prompts! Will feature a wide variety of subjects, but as far as pairings go is solely sambenily and subsets thereof - until I get a prompt for a different ship! I will update tags as I add chapters, and specific content warnings will be at the top of every chapter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. hey batter batter swing

**Author's Note:**

> No content warnings for this chapter! It's established sambenily - amusement park shenanigans with Sammy and Emily.

“I’m trying very hard not to see all this as a metaphor for my life,” Sammy sighed as he handed another five to the carny operating the fairground milk bottle game and picked up the baseball you were supposed to be able to throw and knock the bottles over with. 

The overly sweet face and huge blue eyes of the immense sugar glider stuffed toy seemed to mock him, hanging in the net above the game stall along with a couple of other exotic animal toys. He hadn’t even known they’d  _ made _ sugar glider toys, but he knew Ben would love it. 

Now if only he could actually win the goddamned game, that would be great. 

“You know, Sammy, as sweet as you are, this isn’t the 1950s,” Emily teased. “Are you going to give Ben your class ring after this?” 

He pointed at Emily with one hand, tossing the baseball up and down with the other. “Don’t tempt me, or you will be wearing my old letterman’s jacket to every King Falls event.” 

She laughed, high and clear like a bell. “Only if you promise to wear Ben’s. He can wear mine.” 

Sammy grinned at his girlfriend. “It’s a deal, then. Now if I can just win Serendipity Major over here, we can go find whatever ride Ben is making himself sick on and be on our way!” 

He took careful aim, setting his gaze right on the middle of the three bottle pyramid. It could not be that difficult to knock three milk bottles down. Sammy took a deep breath. Focus. Wind up, pull back, and throw!

… And knock off the top bottle. Again. 

The carny curled his lips into something approximating a smirk. “Sorry, pal. You can give it another go for five bucks, or take a small toy and give it another go for ten bucks.” The sallow teenager leaned over the edge of his booth and stuck a hand out, obviously expecting Sammy to try again. Ugh, the kid probably saw a million people fail at this every day. Sammy grimaced.

“Nope, I think I’ll just take the small toy and leave.” The tiny monkey was pretty cute, but the sugar glider would have been perfect!

Emily cleared her throat. “Actually, Sammy, I think I’d like to give it a try. I was doing some reading the other on King Falls history, which led me to this great book on county fairs. I think I read something about these games, and I think I’ve got a chance.” 

“Sure thing, Emily.” Sammy handed another five bucks over to the carny, who snatched it out of Sammy’s hands eagerly. 

“Step right up, little lady, try yer luck,” he mumbled, obviously more engrossed in adding the cash into the register than he was Emily’s efforts at knocking down the milk bottles.

Before Emily did anything else she stepped back and centered her feet, holding the ball close to her chest and making sure she was standing securely.

Sammy got the feeling that he should maybe take a few steps back. 

She gripped the ball securely, wound up, and took a step forward as she let it fly towards the milk bottles with all the force she could muster. It hit squarely at the bottom of the right bottle, knocking it off the table and onto the ground. The top bottle fell after it and it knocked over the left bottle on its way down. 

The carny looked up from his cash. “What?! How- I mean, wow, gal, you sure got some arm on you.” He looked up at the net filled with massive stuffed animals and sighed. “Which one didja want again?” She pointed him towards the sugar glider and he wearily dragged out a step stool to grab it.

Before Emily could turn all the way around, Sammy had grabbed her waist and spun her in a circle. “Emily, that was amazing! The look on that guy’s face! Where on earth did you learn to throw like that?” 

She grinned at him. “I may have been All-Star Player on my high school’s baseball team four years running. I wanted to be a well-rounded student, and baseball looked like fun!” 

Sammy shook his head in disbelief. “You are one of a kind, Emily Potter.” 

“And you and Ben are the luckier for it,” she told him, tapping him on the nose. 

The carny sighed loudly and dramatically behind them. “Miss, here’s your sugar flier.”

“Sugar glider, man, it’s not that hard,” Sammy said, shaking his head, and he took the sugar glider stuffed toy and handed it to Emily. “You earned it!”

“That I did,” she agreed. “You ready to go find Ben?” 

“Yeah, let’s go before he convinces himself he should ride the Scrambler. We all know what happened last time.” 


	2. gone squatching

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Animal injury is the only content warning I can think of. Canon dynamics of Sammy and Ben being buddies and Ben having a crush on Emily!

Sammy and Ben were on their way to Rosa’s for their after-show waffles when Ben saw it - a crumpled pile of furry limbs, almost unrecognizable as an animal. It was lying in an oddly shaped depression off the side of the road, sides barely still raising with breath. There wasn’t a ton of blood, and he was pretty sure it was moving its legs a little. 

It was a good thing Sammy had been driving, because Ben practically jumped out of his seat trying to get a better look at the creature. After promises of paying for both their waffles, careful application of puppy-eyes (too much and you absolutely ruined the effect), and swearing up and down that if it looked at all dangerous they would drive away, he convinced Sammy to pull over so they could get out and look at the thing.

The moment they got out of the car, Sammy stepped back. “Nope, I absolutely refuse to touch that.”

Ben squinted at the furry creature lying injured on the roadside, but stayed what felt like a safe distance away, avoiding entering the ditch where it lay. “It’s hurt, man, we gotta help it or something.”

Sammy glanced at Ben. “Look at that thing really hard, buddy. Does that look like a deer or a bear cub to you? Even for King Falls, that’s a weird animal.”

“Maybe it’s one of the were-pomchi puppies, partially shifted?” Ben suggested, circling a little closer to the animal. He put one foot into the dip, hesitantly.

It moved a little, almost reaching out - and Ben practically leapt back a good couple of feet. “Ohmygodittriedtotouchme.” 

“What happened to, ‘it’s hurt, man’?” 

Ben shook his head. “Let’s call Emily. She’s gotta have something like this mentioned in some book in the library.”

Sammy smirked. “And of course, it’s not like you have any other reasons for wanting to call Miss Potter, now do you? Especially when we aren’t on air.” There was that Ben Arnold Blush, right on schedule. A new shade of red every time - it was adorable. 

“No reason at all, I - I don’t know why you would even say that, man, I’m - I’m just gonna call her now.” Ben pulled out his cell phone and called Emily. 

She picked up quickly. “Hello, this is Emily Potter?”

  
“Hey, Emily, it’s me,” Ben said, grinning at Emily despite the fact that she was all the way back at her house and he was out in the middle of nowhere the forest. (Nowhere Forest was fairly close to Sweitzer Forest, actually, and Sammy and Ben passed it on the road to the station every day).

“Hey, Ben!” she said, and Ben liked to believe that he could hear her perk up hearing his voice. That was probably dumb and presumptive of him - but still. It was a nice thought. 

Most thoughts of Emily were nice thoughts. 

Sammy cleared his throat, and Ben abruptly remembered he wasn’t alone. “Uh, yes, hey! So, Sammy and I found this creature while we were on our way home from the station this morning, and we were wondering if you might have any reference to it in one of your books?” 

“Can you describe it to me?” 

Ben grimaced. “Uh, it’s lying on the ground, it’s got brownish fur, and four legs.”

He heard a rustle like the pages of a book brushing against each other, softly whispering under the static of the phone connection “Well, Ben, I’d have to say it looks like you are looking at one of the rare Animalis Non Descriptorum.”

“Really? Is- is that a thing?”

Emily laughed into the phone line, a sharp crackle of static. “I’m just kidding. I need a little bit more than fur and legs to make any sort of guess as to its species, Ben.” 

“Can you put it on speaker?” Sammy asked. “This thing looks weirdly familiar and I want to ask Emily to look up something.”

“Sure, man.” 

“So, Emily, have any of your books ever said anything about Bigfoot and his family living here in King Falls?” Sammy asked nonchalantly.

“Sasquatches, Sammy,” Ben said. “And I can tell you that they really prefer the upper west coast - the rain is good for their fur. My grandpa saw one, once, when he was travelling there!”

The phone spat static again for a moment as Emily moved somewhere on her end of the line. “Hold on a sec, guys, I have a couple of nonfiction books on sasquatches somewhere in the library, but I’m not sure where I shelved them…”

Sammy felt something. It might have been just him being suspicious. That’s what it probably was, at any rate. But he could have sworn that he felt the ground shake. 

A few seconds later, Ben jumped and looked around. “You felt that, buddy, right?” he asked, looking at Sammy.

Sammy nodded grimly, and the ground shook again. “Emily, if you’ve got anything in those books, I think you’ll have to save it for when Ben and I show up in person. I think Momma’s coming to pick up her baby and I don’t think we want to be here when she does.” 

“Yeah, you guys go ahead! I don’t want you two to get hurt!” Emily hung up after that, the phone hissing dead air. 

The ground shook again, and neither Sammy and Ben were sure if the sound they heard was weird feedback from Ben’s phone or a distant roar. 

They looked at each other and then ran for the car. 


	3. must have been the way

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No major content warnings that I can think of. This is pure samben fluff. Written on tumblr for the dialogue prompt of "You planned our first date as a picnic on a beach under the stars? Did you swallow a romance novel? Do I need to call a doctor?”

Ben Arnold had a plan. 

He was going to take Sammy out on the most amazing date the other man had ever been on, and it would be the best night of either of their lives. 

Emily had actually helped him come up with the plan. After they’d sort of broken up (they were never really together, so neither of them were sure they could technically have broken up), he’d actually started spending more time around her and found it a lot easier to make conversation when he wasn’t constantly worried about being mistaken for trying to creepily hit on her. Lord knows he still thought she was the loveliest girl he’d ever set eyes on, but neither of them were really looking for something together right now.

And… Ben actually really liked being good friends with Emily. It was fun in a way that had been difficult when he could barely get out a greeting from being so starstruck. 

She’d definitely been a great help with Sammy - from the first time he’d had lunch with after a show when Sammy had laughed at all his jokes and the sound had taken Ben’s breath away and he walked into the library cafe and just  _ sighed _ with the memory and Emily had set down the mug she was filling and raised an eyebrow. She’d asked him who his new crush was and he had sputtered and turned bright red, and things had just sort of snowballed from there. 

When he’d asked Sammy out for the first time he had practically jogged to the library afterwards for a celebratory frappe and (more importantly) to set up a plan.

After the careful studying of at least five different romcoms - among them The Proposal, Groundhog Day, and Love Actually - the two of them settled on a plan. 

Sammy and Ben would go see a movie at the drive-in theater near the lake, then go get milkshakes at the little candy store a few blocks away and eat them while walking along Lake Hatchenhaw’s beach and watching the stars come out. 

There was no way it could go wrong, Ben had a  _ schedule. _ So when the night arrived, he was understandably confident. 

He picked Sammy up at six (right on time, as per the schedule!) and took him to the drive-in.

And then it went wrong. 

The theater schedule had promised they were showing the new Ghostbusters movie tonight, but apparently Esther Rawllins had called in complaining about the treatment of ghosts in the movie, and so they’d had to play their only other movie. 

Ice Age 5: Collision Course. 

And then the popcorn machine was broken and the ice keeping the soda from being a sticky-warm mess had melted so there weren’t any snacks, either.

Which was fine, all of that was totally fine. Sammy thought the movie swap was hilarious and they spent the whole movie making fun of it and whispering jokes at each other. Snacks were not essential because they were going to walk and get milkshakes!

They were just a little bit behind, but Sammy was having fun. 

That was the most important part. 

It was hotter than Ben had thought it would be and the walk seemed way longer than it had looked on the map. But that was fine. The milkshakes promised to be delicious - everyone Ben had talked to said that the food was delicious, the staff were helpful, and the atmosphere was very friendly. 

The sign on the inside of the door flipped from ‘open’ to ‘close’ approximately three seconds before Ben was about to open it. 

It closed early on Fridays, for some idiotic reason. What restaurant closed early on  _ Fridays? _

Ben closed his eyes and sighed. This was not how this night was supposed to go. He let his head fall forward to hit the glass door with a soft thunk.

“Hey, you doing okay, buddy?” Sammy put his hand on Ben’s shoulder, pulling him around to face him. 

“I’m fine, Sammy,” he muttered. He glanced up to meet Sammy’s eyes, dark in the dim streetlights. “I just- I wanted this to be really nice. I know I haven’t always been the greatest friend in world, and you’re just. I don’t know. You deserve the greatest friend in the world.” He grimaced slightly, having said a little more than he’d meant to. 

“Hey,” Sammy said. He smiled at Ben, and squeezed his shoulder gently. “I don’t know about you, but I thought this was really nice so far. You’re my best friend, no matter how terrible the movie we’re watching is or how hot it gets. I’ve had a good time tonight.” He tugged Ben forward into a hug, and they stayed that way for a long moment.

Until the heat of the evening reminded them that any skin touching another person was just a conductor for more heat and humidity, and the two men let go and stepped back. 

Ben hit the door of the milkshake shop as he backed up, and in his surprise he stumbled forward, tripped over the sidewalk, and almost fell flat on his face. Sammy just managed to grab his arms and after an awkward minute of tripping over each other and almost taking each other down, both of them managed to get back onto their feet unscathed. 

Ben looked at Sammy, a grin spreading over his face. “I guess I really am falling for you,” he said.

Sammy laughed. “You’re terrible. I take back everything I just said.” 

“I’m heartbroken, Sammy, I really am,” Ben said solemnly. “I guess this means I have to cancel the rest of the date - and we were supposed to eat our milkshakes while walking along the beach, just the two of us and the stars.” 

“You planned our first date as a picnic on a beach under the stars? Did you swallow a romance novel? Do I need to call a doctor?” Sammy was laughing throughout most of his statement, losing any semblance of seriousness that he might have had. “God, you’re amazing.” 

“It’s all for you,” Ben promised, only half joking. Sammy turned to him, still breathless from laughing and flushed from the heat and the night and just all of it together, and what was Ben supposed to do other than lean over and kiss him? 

That, at least, was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also if anyone can guess what specific song the title is from, I will write them an at least 500 word fic of their choosing. it's a little vague, so good luck!! if you google it that is CHEATING but I will still give it to you if you have to resort to that.


	4. the bitter kind of sweet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warnings for this chapter include cheating on a significant other. This has established benily but also very angsty samben.

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” Sammy whispered, the words muted against Ben’s skin. He pressed a kiss to Ben’s collarbone to punctuate his statement, and he could hear Ben breath in sharply in response. 

“I know,” Ben whispered, barely audible. He pulled away just far enough to meet Sammy’s eyes, still close enough that Sammy could feel the rise and fall of Ben’s chest pressed to his own. 

The morning was still dark around them, and the starlight threw both of their faces into stark shadows and monochrome. 

Ben couldn’t hold eye contact, glancing away toward the broken streetlamp, their parked cars, the locked door of the studio. Sammy didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to undo any of what he - what they - had done. Didn’t know how to say that he would do more the moment Ben asked. 

“Ben, I… Are you going to leave?” he had to ask, because he couldn’t just stand here, couldn’t wait passively for Ben to decide in what way he was going to break Sammy’s heart. Like a band-aid, right? Fast and painful. 

Ben looked up at Sammy for a brief moment, eyes dark and wild and lips already visibly reddened and Sammy had no idea how he was going to face him at work tomorrow if Ben walked away right now. 

“I’m not leaving you,” Ben said, voice hoarse and thick. “I just- I just can’t.” 

He closed his eyes, and Sammy couldn’t stop himself from wondering if he was thinking of Emily. She was probably asleep, probably dreaming happy thoughts of Ben and sugar gliders and never once asking herself if her boyfriend was standing in a parking lot outside a radio station at six am kissing his best friend. 

Sammy shouldn’t have let Ben kiss him. 

But even more importantly, he shouldn’t have kissed Ben back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the offer for guessing the previous chapter's song lyric title still stands, because no one has yet claimed it! this chapter's title is not from any song that I know of.


	5. intoxicate me now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solely samben, written for the prompt of "samben with jawline kisses". Rated T.

If asked what was most difficult thing about working with Ben Arnold every weeknight - from the stubbornness to his tendency to start Twitter wars on the official station account, Sammy would know his answer immediately. He wouldn’t  _ tell _ anyone, but he would know it. 

The goddamn freckles. 

Ben had obviously spent many childhood summers running around the sunny town of King Falls, and the memory of those times lay spattered across his face like paint drops. 

It was the most distracting thing Sammy had ever seen. Every time Ben laughed, every time he sighed and pursed his lips when Doyle was spinning a particularly boring tale or grinned at some dumb joke Sammy made or did basically anything at all with his face, Sammy’s eyes were drawn to those lips and those freckles. 

There were seven, specifically, that drew a line from the right corner of Ben’s mouth up along his jaw and every time Sammy looked at them for too long he was severely tempted to follow that line with his lips. 

It’s not like Ben would mind. 

He’d never  _ said _ anything about being attracted to guys, but Sammy knew what friendship looked like and what it did not.

And friendship looked nothing like the way Ben had flushed when Sammy had hung up on a caller who had drawn him into a long debate and turned to catch Ben staring at him, all dark eyes and barely concealed want. 

It was intoxicating. 

“Sammy. Sammy!”   
  


Sammy snapped out of his daydream of his lips on Ben’s skin, taking him apart kiss by kiss until he-

“Sammy! I had to play an ad because you may be sitting across from me, but you aren’t in the studio tonight. C’mon, man, you’re supposed to be the responsible one of the two of us.”   
  


After soundly banishing all thoughts of noises Ben might make if he was too overwhelmed to even form a coherent sentence, Sammy grinned at Ben’s remark. “I can’t help it if I tune out Pete Meyers, Ben, come on. How many times can you listen to him tell us he’s ‘never going to listen to the station again’?” 

Ben snorted. “I’ll give you that one.” He turned back to the computer screen, checking how much time they had before they were on air again and absentmindedly tapping his fingers against his cheek. 

Which drew attention to those freckles. 

Sammy bit his lip almost hard enough to draw blood. Now was  _ not  _ the time. He was a responsible adult and he could prove it. 

It was just so distracting when Ben did… basically anything at all.

God, he was head over heels for him. 

The rest of their show crawled by slower than a hearse carrying white roses. After Ben had finally flipped the last switch and taken them off air, he turned to Sammy and raised his eyebrows. “Alright, spill. What’s got you so off tonight?”

It took an unreasonable amount of Sammy’s control not to make a joke about how if he was anything, it was definitely more on than off. Responsible adult, he reminded himself. Best friend and colleague, he told himself. But  _ so _ damn sexy, came unbidden to his mind. 

“I’m still here,” Ben prompted, leaning forward in his chair. 

He wouldn’t have gone for it. He really, really wouldn’t. But when Ben leaned forward, his shirt fell open just far enough for Sammy to be able to see that the freckles on Ben’s face spread down his neck and across his shoulders and it was just too much to resist.

And he leaned forward himself, just far enough to press a kiss against Ben’s lips. 

Sammy was about to lean back and apologize, to pull away from Ben and promise that he’d be willing to pretend this never happened. 

And then Ben started kissing him back, heated and wet and Ben was basically out of his chair at this point, staying uncomfortable crouched to keep their lips connected. 

It was sheerly the thought of Ben’s comfort that prompted Sammy to set his hands on Ben’s hips and tug him down till he was sitting, straddling Sammy in his chair.

Ben couldn’t seem to keep quiet, mumbling affectionate terms and desperate endearments into Sammy’s mouth like prayers. He couldn’t stay still, either, carding his hands through Sammy’s hair until it was pulled free from Sammy’s usual ponytail and fell around his face in blond waves. Sammy would have been embarrassed by the noise he made when Ben tugged on his hair, but he was far too busy concentrating on kissing every freckle on Ben’s jaw and down along his neck.

They did not leave the studio anywhere close to on time that night. 


	6. the space between

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More samben smooches, also rated T! Content warning for alcohol consumption/drunkenness. This time for the prompt of samben with neck kisses.

Sammy had to face the facts one morning after a show. He and Ben had been eating breakfast at Rosa’s, and Ben had had dark circles under his eyes and a dumb cowlick sticking up on one side of his head where he’d fallen asleep leaning on Sammy’s shoulder on the drive to Rosa’s. Sammy had made some awful pun for the sole purpose of hearing Ben snort-laugh and almost spit out a mouthful of soda and he’d had the sudden realization that he was head over heels for this dorky radio host. 

One who might like him back, if the way he glanced at Sammy out from dark lashes when he thought Sammy wasn’t looking or the way he drew his fingers across his lips after seeing Sammy apply chapstick that one time was any indication.

But if Sammy knew anything about Ben after a little under a year of working together, he knew Ben would never make the first move. He’d shown that well enough with the whole thing with Emily - who both boys were good friends with now, but whatever had been between her and Ben had met its end through a lack of forward action on either end of the equation.

Sammy could make the first move.

He’d punched the mayor, how much harder could asking out Ben be?

(So much harder.)

His plan had been to ask Ben out next month - it would be the one year anniversary of them working together. The perfect time, right?

But then they’d had Jeb Bjorn on the show, who owned a massive area of land just below King Falls’ boundaries on the mountain. And on that land, he grew grapes. Not just any grapes - a variety he said was both hardy enough to withstand mountain winters, but grapes that formed the delicious basis for his thriving winery.

And Mr. Bjorn had brought some of his special stock to share with them that night, as well as a discount for all listeners who mentioned they had heard about his business on King Falls AM when they bought any one of his wines in the local stores.

It all went downhill after Mr. Bjorn had left - he had assured Sammy and Ben that his chauffeur would drive him home safely - and the two of them and a mostly empty bottle of wine had finished the show for that morning. (Just before they had gone offline, they had received a panicked call from Troy making sure they did NOT plan on driving anywhere until both of them were fully sober.)

They were both a little bit tired and more than a little bit drunk.

They had never been drunk in each others’ company, and Sammy was equally delighted and horrified to discover that Ben was a handsy drunk. 

On the walk out to the parking lot, Ben never stopped touching Sammy for a second. He had an arm slung around Sammy’s shoulders, hanging so close that Sammy could smell the wine still on both of their breaths. His other hand wandered, dragging across the plaster of the studio walls and pausing in the space between them until he reached over to pull out Sammy’s bun. All the while he babbled about the show that night and how nice Mr. Bjorn had been and how the fluorescent lights made Sammy’s hair almost glow. 

Sammy himself was content in breathing and letting the warmth of the alcohol in his veins wash over him along with Ben’s words, feeling the warmth of Ben’s hands on him and his weight heavy on Sammy’s shoulders. 

The two of them staggered outside, the dim glow of the streetlights and rising sun barely illuminated the pavement beneath their feet. Sammy pulled Ben over to the outer wall of the studio and used said wall to support a slow slide to the floor. Ben followed him down, ending up more on Sammy than the ground itself, legs tangled and one arm around Sammy’s shoulders still and the other tangling itself into Sammy’s hair. 

“Your hair is so soft,” he murmured, leaning into Sammy till their foreheads brushed and their breath mingled in the space between them. 

Sammy could say nothing. It was all he could do to breath with Ben looking at him like- like he wanted to devour. Ben’s lips were parted and cheeks flushed; his pupils dilated to almost fill his iris. 

He was almost expecting Ben to kiss him. 

He was not expecting Ben to let his head tip forward past Sammy’s face to kiss his neck.

“ _God_ , Ben,” he breathed, barely audible.

Ben pulled back, lips sin-red and grinning with the confidence of someone either totally sure of their actions or totally drunk (or both). He said something along the lines of he knew his kissing skills were divine but not quite that divine that Sammy immediately forgot because when Ben stopped talking, he dipped his head back down to continue his earlier pursuits. 

And this time he set his teeth against the crook where Sammy’s neck met his shoulder and Sammy threw his head back hard enough against the station wall that he saw stars. “Ohmygod don’t stop,” he whispered as loud as he could, which was not particularly loud given that Sammy felt like he had no air left in his lungs to say anything at all. 

Ben definitely heard him, though. 

They did make it to Sammy’s apartment before anything massively inappropriate for workplace conduct broke out.

Barely. 

(Sammy had to wear a turtleneck for the next couple of days.)


	7. people who are terrible at apologizing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "people who are terrible at apologizing: : your roommate who hasn’t done the dishes for six weeks, your sibling who ate the last of that cake you’d been saving, and benjamin arnold"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers up until Take A Look, It's In A Book. Featuring Ben being in love with Emily and arguing between Sammy and Ben. ... Not a happy fic, whoops. Cross-posted from tumblr, [here.](http://wendy-comet.tumblr.com/post/154323250867/but-i-still-love-her-i-dont-care-for-the)

Ben tries texting Sammy first. Sammy doesn’t answer any of them. 

_ [6:12 AM] Bennycat:Sammy, hey. I’m really sorry, I didn’t mean to blow up at you like that.  _

_ … _

_ [6:15 AM] Bennycat: I’m at Rosa’s, if you want to talk? I promise I can explain.  _

_... _

_ [6:20 AM] Bennycat: Sammy please _

_ … _

_ [6:24 AM] Bennycat: Look, you were the one who wouldn’t stop bugging me about the stupid notebook! I’m sorry I had one stupid question, can you blame me? You showed up out of nowhere, who even are yuo!? _

_... _

_ [6:24 AM] Bennycat: *you?!  _

_... _

_ [Your contact “Bennycat” has been renamed “Benedict Arnold”.] _

_... _

_ [6:30 AM] Ben Arnold: Are you coming? _

_... _

_ [6:42 AM] Ben Arnold: Fine, screw you too.  _

So he calls Sammy next. 

Sammy doesn’t pick up, and Ben leaves three voicemails anyway because Ben is a stupid stubborn asshole who doesn’t know when to quit. 

“Hey, Sammy, I don’t- I don’t really know how to say this. I just. Damn it, I just wanted to… I don’t know.” 

...

“Look, just ignore that last message, okay? God, Sammy, I am  _ so sorry _ , please don’t keep ignoring me. You’re my best friend. You’re my- my best friend, you’re the only person in this whole goddamned town I trust, I just,  _ shit _ , I can’t do this. I’m sorry, Sammy. I need you.” 

...

“I know I screwed up! But it’s a logical question, Sammy, what was I supposed to do? You can’t just ask someone a question like that, not out of the blue. I love Emily, I had to explore every option. I promise I trust you, I promise I’ll stop leaving you out of my plans, I-I mean they’re still a need to know basis, but I get it, you need to know. Just- I know Emily’s not here and you’ve been the best friend that I  _ really  _ don’t deserve, but you have to know I still love her, I don’t care what I have to do to get her back, please, Sa-”

Ben gets cut off by the beep of the voicemail time limit, and Sammy turns off his phone. He’s done. 


	8. funny how reflections change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A not super shippy and definitely sad Sammy inner-monologue, pre-A King Falls Christmas, so him and Ben are still in the midst of an argument.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cross posted from tumblr, [here.](http://wendy-comet.tumblr.com/post/154556109082/i-dont-know-where-i-belong-i-see-sam-saying)

After he left the radio station, Sammy came to the abrupt realization that he really, really wanted to talk to someone about what had just happened.

Well, that was almost true. 

He wanted to talk to  _ Ben _ about what had just happened. 

But the thought of turning back, of listening to Ben stumble over too-late apologies and wave that damn notebook like a white flag, well… It didn't appeal to Sammy. He kept going instead, ignored every word Ben called after him and left the station. 

Sammy got into his car and drove off without another word. 

He was probably more distracted than was really wise when driving, but he really couldn't bring himself to care. Sammy still couldn't stop thinking about Ben. 

_ ‘Who is Sammy Stevens??’ _ Ben had written. Like it didn't even matter that Sammy was the person who had sat next to him in a recording studio every night for over a year, the person who had laughed at Ben’s stupid, stupid jokes over waffles after shows, the person who had dropped everything to help Ben chase down the lovely Miss Emily Potter and never said a word about his own feelings for either of them.

No, what mattered to Ben Arnold was a fan who wouldn't stop calling the show to ask about Shotgun Sammy and a past he'd never once shown curiosity in openly. 

“He could have just asked me,” Sammy said aloud to the empty passenger seat in his car. “I would have told him.” 

The empty seat said nothing. 

Not that Sammy had expected it to. Cars usually didn't talk unless they were possessed (allegedly, it  _ could  _ have been a very rude prank), and last week the local mechanic had certified his car as ghost-free in a promotional special for the new busting service they offered. 

“Sometimes,” he muttered, “I think this whole damn town is crazy.” 

Sammy had to swerve suddenly as he almost missed the exit off of the backwoods road and back into King Falls. The sun wouldn't rise for another hour or so, and it was still dark out. On either side of the road, the trees loomed stark against the purple sky. 

It was beautiful. For a second, Sammy wished he was here with Ben, who would undoubtedly know some story from the town’s past about the shadow-beasts or the mothmen who flew every morning after the moon set but before the sun rose. Something like that. 

When he tried to think of Ben, though, sitting in the car next to him, all Sammy could think of was Ben ignoring over a year of friendship, of  _ best _ friendship. 

And all because Emily had been abducted, and Ben had known her a lot less well than he had Sammy. 

Sammy snorted. Showed him where Ben’s priorities lay.

The forest began to thin around him, giving way to the lights and buildings of the strange mountain town. 

Home. 

“I don't know where I belong,” he said aloud, testing the words. They rang a little too true, and Sammy pulled into the parking lot of his apartment complex still hearing them in his mind. 

He lived here. He worked here. He'd been here for more than a year, at this point. 

But apparently, people still weren't sure who ‘Sammy Stevens’ was. 

That was almost the truth. 

_ Ben  _ still wasn't sure who Sammy was. 


	9. one more time with feeling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this one is just POST-a king falls Christmas, because if none of the townsfolk remember the events of that night, that means BEN doesn't remember the events of that night, which means he doesn't remember Sammy forgiving him. also, I felt like they needed to talk it out a little more than they did. you cannot sing a song and have your best friend magically forgive you, kids.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, cross-posted from tumblr. [Here's the link.](http://wendy-comet.tumblr.com/post/154557722562/dude-i-love-your-sambemily-there-are-times-we) Implied samben and benily, but neither really gets a resolution in the ficlet.

The sky was overcast, the evening cool and damp. Snow still fell in infrequent showers – it hadn’t stopped since the night of the Christmas tree lighting. Ben sat outside the library, slush soaking into his tennis shoes and the back of his jeans.

He hadn’t really planned to be outside tonight.

Earlier, he’d been in the library, studying the effects of prisms on sunlight versus various other light sources. But he couldn’t really focus, in the library. Not anymore. Everywhere he looked, he saw the good Emily had done for this town, the memories that he had of her. In the reference section, sitting on the air conditioner on a hot summer day and threatening to kick Ben out if he made one more joke about it being hot because of him. In the kids’ section before it was entirely refurbished, the walls half-painted and with more paint on herself and the workers helping her than on the walls.

Her smiling.

God, he missed her.

Ben shivered, and stared up at the sky. He couldn’t see any stars tonight behind the cloud cover. Even the moon was no more than a pale glow behind the thick layer.

Snow crunched on the ground to his right, and he glanced over to see Sammy walking up the street. His friend looked at him, and smiled.

Ben smiled back, hesitant, still unsure of exactly where they stood after the notebook thing.

“Hey, Ben,” Sammy said, and he didn’t  _ sound _ angry. Ben knew what angry was like on Sammy, knew the bitterness in his voice and the tense crease on his forehead. Now Sammy sat next to him, posture loose and easy, seemingly uncaring of the dampness of the concrete or of how he’d been furious at Ben days earlier.

Still. Whether or not Sammy had forgiven him, that didn’t undo what Ben had written.

“I’m really sorry, Sa-” he blurted, but Sammy cut him off with a hand on Ben’s knee. His touch was cold, and Ben realized that Sammy wasn’t wearing gloves or a hat or even a sweatshirt. Which, far be it from Ben to lecture people on smart behavior, but it was literally snowing.

“It’s okay, Ben,” Sammy said before Ben could say anything about his lack of any proper winter wear. “I know you love Emily, and I don’t have to  _ like _ your notebook, but I’m your best friend. I should support you in this, right? I promised you I would.”

“No, Sammy, that’s just it!” Ben started talking without really planning where he was going to go with it, and the resulting jumble of emotions was barely comprehensible even to him. “I just, you’ve been that this whole time, I mean! The supporting me thing. I never told you what was in the notebook – which, I couldn’t, there was no way – not that I didn’t trust you, I promise I did, it was just a lot of stuff I had to plan for and you were there the whole time, always by my side! And the moment you wanted one thing, one tiny thing, I go and screw it up like that with the stupid questions.”

He let his head fall into his hands and stared between his fingers at the dirty snow beneath his feet.

Sammy let go of Ben’s knee, and reached up to pull one of his hands away from his face. “Ben, hey. Look at me here, buddy.”

Ben shook his head, but Sammy was gently insistent and how was Ben supposed to help it if Sammy’s voice was even and calming and persuasive, if the longer Sammy’s hand was on his the warmer they both felt, if when he glanced up at Sammy even for a moment the other man’s eyes were steady and inviting. He gave in, and turned to face Sammy, waiting for his friend to talk.

“I get it,” Sammy told him, and squeezed his hands once. “There are times we live for somebody else, even if no one else understands.” He pulled Ben into a hug, and his hands may have been icy but the rest of him was solid and comfortingly warm in the chill air. “It’s hard, buddy, I know,” Sammy continued, his voice muffled against Ben’s shoulder. “We’ll find her. Together.”

Ben wondered, for a moment, if he missed a meaning somewhere in Sammy’s words.

But then Sammy was standing, and offering Ben a hand. “Rosa’s?” he asked. “I hear they’ve got a holiday special of peppermint syrup and crushed candy canes in your waffles.”

“That sounds weirdly delicious,” Ben responded, and he took Sammy’s offered hand.

They would get through this. Together.


	10. from the earth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> content warnings: death (no main character death though) and necromancy! ship for this chapter is 100% benily

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cross posted from tumblr [here,](http://wendy-comet.tumblr.com/post/155663070292/018-with-benily-and-if-requesting-the-song-is) and the song they're singing is Hozier's Like Real People Do and can be found [here. ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrleydRwWms)

It was early in the morning in the town of King Falls, far too early for most of the townspeople to be awake. 

Emily Potter, however, had never considered herself ‘most people’. She sat in a clearing that morning, heedless of the dew dampening her pajama pants or the breeze that shivered its way through the shrubbery around her. The sun was just catching on the edge of the horizon, a glimmer of pale light streaking across the dim sky. 

It was beautiful, and suitably atmospheric for her current activity. 

After all, necromancy was not an art easily practiced in the afternoon summer heat or even in the chill of true night. Bodies tended to get more than little gross when around too much heat, and too stiff to do anything at all if it got too cold. So the cool air of the morning was just perfect. 

She surveyed the clearing, and looked down at the book lying open in her lap. The meadow in the picture looked substantially larger - the trees had been slowly taking back their territory for years, now. The piles of stones scattered throughout the nearby woods and in the remnants of the meadow, however, were unmistakable. 

The book had no title, and whatever image had been on the outer cover had long since rotted away. Emily had found it in the basement of the King Falls library when she’d first arrived, charred and fragile but still holding together. It was old, that she was certain. The dialect of English was almost incomprehensible, but with enough time and the internet she’d figured it out. 

“Ben?” she called back into the forest. “Are you coming?”

Her boyfriend steps out of the woods to stand at her side, glancing back and forth uneasily. “Em, you know how close we are to the trail up to Hell’s Doorstep, right?” 

She smiled at him, and patted the grass next to her. “Trust me, I know exactly where we are. I want to show you something.” 

Ben looked reassured by her grin, and smiled a little in return. “Actually, if you stand up for a sec, I have a blanket we could sit on?” 

“Aw, thanks!” Emily stood up and let Ben spread the blanket in the spot where she’d been sitting before. “Alright,” she continued once they were both settled, leaning against the tree behind them and into each other. “So, a little bird told me someone was a theatre kid in high school-” 

“Would this bird happen to be a radio host?”

“-Maybe. Anyway, you still like to sing, right?” 

See, the thing about necromancy rituals was that they were very specific. They didn’t create life in the traditional way, but it still worked a hell of a lot better with two people than one. And little details like duets rather than solos would make all the difference when reanimating humans, especially.  

Yeah, the first time Emily snuck into the morgue really hadn’t gone well for anyone involved. She still needed to send an anonymous apology card and massive cookie basket to the orderly on duty there that night… 

She snapped back to the present just in time to hear Ben finish his sentence. “Yeah, I’d like to think I’ve still got some of that magic.” He was smiling a little wider, that slightly lop-sided cocky grin he got when he knew he was good at something and liked showing it off. Emily couldn’t help but lean over and kiss the side of his mouth. 

“You’ve got your chance to prove it right here,” she said. “I want to hear you sing something, okay? The lyrics are in this book, and I can get you started on the melody.” 

Emily flipped through the book until she found the page she wanted, pointing out the faded but legible writing.  _ “I had a thought, dear, however scary about that night, the bugs and the dirt.”  _

Ben mostly just listened to her until she hit the chorus and he joined in.  _ “I will not ask you where you came from, I would not ask it, neither should you.”  _  His voice was soft, smoothing out the places where Emily fell a little flat or missed a note. 

She couldn’t resist taking a moment to turn her head to the side and rest her forehead against Ben’s. “You’re really good, Ben. How come I had to hear about this talent through Sammy?” she murmured, only half-joking in her complaint. He just shrugged, still smirking at her, and started in on the second verse. He’d well picked up on the melody by now, the two of them winding around the song’s curves and nuances like they’d been practicing it for years. 

Emily really didn’t know how  _ she _ knew the melody to the song; it wasn’t like the probably decades old tome had contained a handy CD-ROM to play the instrumental version for a tutorial. She just knew it. 

Which was probably a bad sign, but research - even research that held the possibility of starting a zombie invasion - was one of her favorite parts about this job here in King Falls. The libraries back home had never had anything half as interesting. 

(The stone cairns in the clearing started to shift about halfway through the second verse, but Emily and Ben were too busy singing and making eyes at each other to notice right away. They would probably be fine.) 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i swear if i didn't have like eighteen other in progress works i need to write stuff for i'd write more of this. maybe someday!!


	11. here we are in the weeds again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sammy and Ben friendship, pretty gen. Set soon before episode 44, Sweet Dreams and Flying Machines. Cross-posted from tumblr [ here,](http://wendy-comet.tumblr.com/post/157048442182/id-like-it-if-you-stayed-samben-7-of-idk) written for the dialogue prompt 'I'd like it if you stayed'. Kinda angsty, but happy in the end I'd say.

Shadows dusted over the recording equipment, lit only by the soft glow of the various status lights around the studio. Ben was packing up, making sure everything was primed and ready for the next showrunners. 

It didn’t take long, and Ben was soon walking out of the recording studio. The station itself was small, with cramped hallways and a sort of thick dusty scent that stuck to you for hours even after leaving the station. Sammy was standing in the breakroom they shared with Chet, usually, leaning against the back of the couch with a paper cup of water. 

“You ready to head out?” he asked Ben, pushing off the couch. “Just wanted to grab a drink of water.” 

“What, you didn’t bring a water bottle?” Ben teased. “So unprepared, Sammy. Can’t believe you’d come to work like that.” 

Sammy shook his head. “You know what, I’m not the one who shows up to work with a twenty-ounce mug of coffee every day, so you have no room to poke fun here.” He walked over to Ben, dropping his empty water cup in the garbage by the door. “I’m pretty sure your blood is at least seventy percent caffeine by this point.”   
  
Ben shrugged. “Ends justify the means, buddy.” As long as he could keep going, keep showing up to work and keep his plan in the notebook rolling, he could handle an unwise amount of coffee. He started walking towards the exit, letting Sammy follow behind. The corridors were narrow enough that while the two men could theoretically walk side by side, it really wouldn’t be that comfortable. 

As they walked out, Sammy was quiet. It wasn’t that unusual, especially after a show without a lot of callers. The more they talked in the show, the less they tended to talk directly after it ended. … Unless Ben had been in the throes of a ‘friendly debate’, which he was fully prepared to admit meant that he was not going to shut up about the topic for at least another thirty minutes. 

This quiet felt different, though, and when Ben glanced back at his friend, Sammy’s mouth was tight, eyebrows low. He was staring at the ground, giving the obnoxious paisley carpet far more attention than it deserved. “You doing okay?” Ben asked. He stopped walking and faced his friend. 

“Just tired,” Sammy said. “I’ll be fine once I get some food in me.” 

Ben didn’t say anything else, but neither did Sammy. The two men just stood in the dim hallway for another moment, silent. After an awkward second of chewing on his lip and fidgeting, Ben shrugged. “If you say so, man.” He began walking again, and tried to put the image of the dark circles under Sammy’s eyes and the rough tone his voice had carried out of his mind.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that it was his fault (and if he was honest, didn’t really  _ want _ to shake it, because it was the truth). If he hadn’t dragged Sammy into this whole alien mess in the first place, he would probably be getting a lot more sleep. Ben rubbed his face, sighing. He couldn’t let himself start thinking like that. Emily had been Sammy’s friend too, and Sammy had always wanted to help. Ben just… hadn’t let him. That had probably caused more tension between the two of them than the current stresses of Ben’s plan.

They were just exiting the building when Ben stopped, snapping his fingers. “Oh, I almost forgot! I have a meeting today, I gotta talk to Mary about those lenses. Do you mind if we eat fast? Or I guess you can take as long as you want, but I’ll have to get going.” 

Sammy didn’t say anything, and which probably meant he was fine with it. 

Except. 

Except Ben had jogged over to his car, and then when he’d looked back Sammy hadn’t moved from outside the station doors. He’d just been standing there, and then leaned back against the rough brick wall. His arms were crossed over his chest, and his bag lay forgotten on the ground. 

“Hey,” Ben called, and Sammy’s head snapped up like it was on a string. 

“I’m fine, Ben, don’t worry,” he said, barely loud enough for Ben to hear him. “Just go ahead without me, I’m gonna take a minute.” 

Yeah, Ben didn’t buy that for a second. He set his bag inside his car, before heading back over to Sammy. “Sammy,” he said when he got closer, noting the way Sammy glanced up again, quick and abrupt, before returning his gaze to the pavement. “You sure you’re alright?”

Sammy sighed. “Ben. How many times do I have to say it? I’m fine. Just go meet Mary, okay?” 

Ben frowned, and leaned against the wall next to Sammy. “See, I’m gonna take a wild stab in the dark here, and guess that you’re not fine? You wanna talk about it?” 

“I thought you had a notebook thing.” You’d have to be deaf to miss the bitterness just under the surface of Sammy’s voice. He held up a hand before Ben could say anything, cutting his friend off. “I’m not mad, I-”

“I’m just disappointed?” Ben asked, unable to stop the grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Sammy snorted a little, and he wasn’t  _ smiling _ but at least he didn’t look quite so tired. “Stop that, I’m being serious.” He let his hand fall to hit the brick behind them, almost brushing Ben’s hand. 

“I know, I know. Sorry. Keep going, I promise I won’t interrupt this time.” 

“Unlikely, but I appreciate the effort.” Sammy tipped his head back, staring at the bruise-purple morning sky. “I don’t know how to say this,” he murmured. His fingers tapped a scattered rhythm against the wall, impatient with himself or just anxious, Ben couldn’t say. 

Sammy took a breath. Tried again. “I just - I’d like it if you stayed.” 

“What do you mean?”    
  
“It feels like you’re always somewhere else, Ben. If you’re in the studio with me, you’re planning for when you’re out of it. If we’re going to have breakfast, you’re on the phone or in a hurry, or memorizing another step out of that notebook. It’s… I know it’s important to you, it’s important to me too! I just miss the way things were, you know?” Sammy was biting his lip, so hard it looked like it was about to bleed. Ben wanted to reach forward, touch his face. Show him the gentleness he deserved. It was a confusing feeling, and he ended up just making a fist with one hand and pressing it against the cold brickwork. “It was so much easier when all we had to worry about were ghosts in the library or whatever the hell Beauregard was up to back then before the transmogrifier.” 

“I… I’m not sure what to say.” Ben was still looking at Sammy, couldn’t seem to take his eyes off the man. “I’m sorry, Sammy, you know I am! I don’t want this to come between us. You’re my best friend, and-” 

“-Look, Ben, I get it! Believe me, out of everyone in this town, I  _ get it _ . You love her. You’d do anything to have her here again safely. And I’m on your side, I’ll be right there with you in whatever idiotic piece of the plan we’re enacting next.” Sammy sighed, and let himself slide down till the wall till he was sitting on the concrete. “I’m just so tired sometimes.” 

It was cold this morning, the damp chill settling in like an unwanted relative on your couch. Sammy was shivering in his thin t-shirt, and before he could think himself out of the action Ben was shrugging out of his coat and dropping it over his friend’s shoulders. He waited for a second, waited until Sammy looked back up at him. “Sammy, I’m on your side as much as you’re on mine. That’s the way this friendship thing works, right? I can meet with Mary later, it can wait.” He crouched down till he and Sammy were eye level, and reached out to take his hand. “We can take a break, buddy. I’m sorry I didn’t see this sooner, I get a little… intense about this sometimes.” 

Sammy grinned ruefully. “How does anyone stay mad at you? It would be like kicking a puppy, you’re so apologetic.” He let Ben pull him to his feet, and the two men were steadied by each other, hand in hand and matching smiles. 

Ben laughed a little, pulling away but still keeping hold of one of Sammy’s hands. “Well, most people don’t get quite that heartfelt of an apology. Alright, you still want to head to Rosa’s or is there somewhere else you wanna go?” 

“Rosa’s sounds great,” Sammy said, and let Ben lead him over to their cars. 

Things weren’t really okay, yet, but they would be. 


	12. if you love me (don't let go)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cross-posted from tumblr, but I am very tired right now and do not want to go find and link the post to this. Probably from a prompt by the ever-amazing Kai, thank you very much for enabling me and I promise I'll write new stuff soon. Angsty mostly-platonic but VERY affectionate samben feels, spoilers for the episode where Greg is a douchebag. No wait, that's every episode. Spoilers for episode fifty, I think? Everlong, the newest Sammiversary one.

Ben sat down on the floor the moment Sammy closed the door behind the two of them. “Jesus, I’m so sorry, Sammy. That had to have been the worst anniversary show.”

Sammy knelt beside him, setting an arm cautiously around Ben’s shoulders. Ben leaned into his friend immediately, knowing he didn’t deserve this comfort but desperate for it anyway. He shouldn’t have lied to Emily, he should have told her everything, but he couldn’t do that to her, not like that.

“Hey, hey, Ben. It’s okay, I promise.”

Ben sniffled and shifted, pulling Sammy’s arm tighter around him. “That fucking ad Grisham got, everything with– with– Emily, and I was just, so fucking pissed, man.”

Sammy hummed softly, not seeming to care Ben was probably getting gross tears and snot all over his shirt. “I know, it wasn’t exactly the low-key night we were envisioning. But we’re all still here, we’re all still safe. That’s worth something, right?”

The wood flooring was cold even through Ben’s jeans and he shivered, almost unconsciously clutching Sammy just that much closer. He nodded, trusting that Sammy would feel the motion even if he couldn’t see it. Neither of them had thought to turn the lights on when they walked in, and the two men were lit only by the hint of the sun through the front window.

“It is, buddy. And – And it means so goddamn much to me that you’re here, you have no idea, I just, I love you.” Ben hated crying, hated the stutter-step to his words and the cracks in his voice. He stood, shrugging off Sammy’s arm and intending to go wash his face or grab some food for the two of them. Something that would make him feel a little more functional, at least.

But he didn’t get further than a step away before Sammy grabbed his wrist, still kneeling on the floor.

“Wait,” he whispered, barely audible. When Ben glanced down at his friend, Sammy wasn’t looking back up. He was staring at the floor in front of him, frozen in place with a white-knuckle grip on Ben’s wrist. It almost hurt, and Ben knelt beside him.

“Sammy?”

“Ben, I just. _Fuck.”_

Sammy shook his head. Ben reached out, pulled him into a tight hug. “Hugs all around, buddy, we need this.”

They were both kneeling on Ben’s floor now, arms around each other, chest to chest, totally giving up on pretending that they weren’t crying.

“I thought I’d left all that crap behind, I was such an asshole and –”

“I’m still lying to Emily, you know? I promised her, to her face –”

“I was just a kid but that doesn’t justify the crap I said!”

“God, she’s never gonna trust me again. She’s right not to!”

They ran out of breath at the same time, ending up just silently leaning on each other, Ben still fucking crying like a goddamn faucet. “Sorry,” he got out, breathless. “I can’t really, turn this off. You know.”

“Ben, Benny, I promise it’s okay.” Sammy pulled back just far enough that Ben could see the tears still drying on his face. “I’m not going anywhere; I’m staying right here. I mean, as long as you want a rabble-rousing stranger like me around,” he tried to joke, but there was no humor in his voice.  

“I’m staying too!” Ben blurted out, shaking even in Sammy’s arms. “We gotta stick together, Sammy. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, I can’t even imagine losing you. I promise, no matter what you said in your past, _I know you._ Whatever the fuck Grisham claims, you’ll never be alone because I’m staying by your side.”

“You can’t just say things like that,” Sammy said, trying not to start crying again and failing completely. “I mean, I. You.” He was too choked up to continue talking, shaking his head and smiling at Ben through his tears. “Love you too, Benny,” he finally whispered, barely above a breath. “So much.”

Ben leaned forward, pressing his forehead against Sammy’s. “I’ll let ‘Benny’ slide just this once,” he said, “Only for you.”

Sammy just kept shaking his head, smiling and crying, face damp when he brushed against Ben. He couldn’t seem to get any more words out, but he didn’t really need to at this point.

There was something especially difficult about this, here, seeing Sammy cry. Ben made the personal vow to hunt down Grisham and punch him in the face. Maybe get him impeached? Anything. That would have to wait till tomorrow, though.

Tonight, Ben had a crying best friend and large couch complete with a cabinet full of cheesy movies and a kitchen that contained popcorn. He rubbed the tears from his own face and took a couple slow, deep breaths. Sammy did so goddamn much for him, deserved so much more than anything Ben could give.

He stood slowly, pulling Sammy up with him. “You wanna watch a movie, eat some popcorn?” he asked, keeping his voice as steady as he could. It was more than a little scratchy and rough after the crying, but he could at least keep his tone steady.

Sammy shook his head again. “I’m really tired,” he whispered. Ben nodded, and led him out to the living room to his couch.

“I’m grabbing a blanket and a couple pillows,” he said. “Be right back, buddy.”

Before he could leave, Sammy grabbed his hand. “Stay with me?” he asked, hardly even audible.

“Of course,” Ben assured. “Whatever you need.” He leaned down to hug Sammy again before going and getting the blanket and pillows off his bed.

They’d make it through this together. That was the most important thing. After all, they’d made it this far.

Sammy was already falling asleep by the time Ben returned, and he himself was yawning and stumbling in the hallway. He didn’t bother setting up a nice area to sleep, just tossed the bedding on the couch and flopped down beside his best friend.

“Good night,” he murmured, and felt Sammy’s arm flop over his side, pull him close. “Love you, Sammy.”

“Love you too, Benny,” Sammy mumbled, and in seconds both men were asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed! leave a comment if you did? :D


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